1. Field
One or more exemplary embodiments relate to an optical zoom probe, and more particularly, to an optical zoom probe having a liquid lens.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the field of medical imaging, demand for a technique of precisely photographing cross-sectional layers under the surface of tissue (e.g., skin of a human body) together with obtaining information on the surface of the tissue has increased. Specifically, since most cancers are generated at a lower part of epithelial cells and metastasize into dermal cells in which blood vessels exist, if the cancers are discovered early, damage due to the cancers may be dramatically reduced. Existing imaging techniques, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), X-ray computed tomography (CT), ultrasound waves, and the like, may be used to photograph cross-sectional layers under the skin by passing through the skin, but resolutions thereof are low, and thus, early stage cancer having a small size cannot be detected. However, unlike the existing methods, since an optical coherence tomography (OCT) technique introduced in recent days uses light, a skin penetration depth thereof is as low as about 2 to 3 mm, but resolution thereof is as high as about ten times that of an ultrasound wave, and thus, it is expected that the OCT technique may be useful for diagnosis of early stage cancer having a size of about 50 to about 100 μm.
Not only with respect to the OCT technique but also in various other fields using an optical device, there are demands regarding adjustment of a focusing location of light or adjustment of a size of an optical spot to be irradiated, and there is also a demand for miniaturization of the optical device.
Liquid lenses have been developed to meet the demands regarding focal distance adjustment, a zoom function, and miniaturization.